CPM sees Hyde Act in the waiver

“The Hyde Act’s conditions will continue to bind India and its civilian nuclear programme,” said Prakash Karat, CPM's general secretary, reports Zia Haq.

On saturday when the news of the Vienna waiver came in, the CPM was in an all-important Politburo huddle in the Capital.

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The party reaction was whittled down to a terse two-liner by Politburo leader Sitaram Yechury because it had other important issues on its platter and time was running out.

The CPM, a source said, was awaiting a copy of the full and final draft on which the waiver was sought, before hitting out.

On Sunday, its homework was done. The CPM critiqued the waiver, linked it to the dreaded Hyde Act and said it was a foreign-policy sellout that could transform India’s traditional approach towards countries like Iran.

“The Hyde Act’s conditions will continue to bind India and its civilian nuclear programme,” said Prakash Karat, party general secretary.

And in the strongest indication yet that the Left may not be open to any kind of truck with the Congress, Karat said it would work towards rescinding the 123 deal if a third front propped by the Left came to power.

The CPM said India was now committed to “align” itself to international efforts to “limit the spread of enrichment technology to countries who (sic) do not have them.”

This was one of the conditions of the waiver and so, India will now have to join US efforts against Iran, the CPM general secretary added.

The party added there was a mention (no.GOV/1621) in para 2 (b) of the waiver that India could not withdraw its facilities from safeguards or inspections by the international atomic watchdog. This is a part of the Hyde Act.

India had opposed the non-proliferation regime, calling it discriminatory.

Moreover, the party contended that the conditions of the Hyde Act have been weaved into the final draft on which the waiver was sought.